Synopsis via Second Sight:
“Orphaned 19 year old Brighton call girl Blue (Leila Mimmack – “Becoming Human”, “Silent Witness”) is sent by her violent pimp Freddie (David Sibley – “Broadchurch”, “Downton Abbey”) and his blowsy partner Cynthia (Julie Graham – “Tower Block”, “New Tricks”) to meet a new punter in Brighton, unaware of the horrifying impact it will have upon her life. As Blue begins to fall for the charms of her client Bill Hepworth (Joseph Beattie – “Hex”, “Brideshead Revisited”), she’s even more intrigued by the grand Regency terraced house that he is renovating: a once infamous Victorian brothel.
Together they uncover a secret room that unlocks many dark and terrifying secrets relating to Blue’s murky family past and the death of her mother. A terrible supernatural force is about to be unleashed and nobody will escape its monstrous power unless a score for a heinous felony is settled”.
Review:
Premiered at FrightFest 2014, this low budget directorial debut by John Shackleton (writer/producer – “Panic Button”) immediately became an audience and critics’ favourite.
Shot in Brighton, England and making excellent use of the locations, “The Sleeping Room” is a horror ghost story that will be popular with fans of such films as “The Woman in Black”, and has a contemporary feel to add to the visitations to the past.
Leila Mimmack (as Blue) puts in a strong performance as the young call girl that stumbles into the wrong place at the wrong time and is ably supported by Joseph Beattie (as Bill Hepworth), the troubled house restorer who’s bitten off far more than he can chew in the abandoned old property. David Sibley as the vicious pimp Freddie is splendid and creates a truly unpleasant character that only adds further grief to Blue’s increasingly troubled existence.
“The Sleeping Room” is a ghostly drama that joins a growing list of strong supernatural films that have come out of the UK in recent years. For a low budget piece, director Shackleton has crafted a good-looking, atmospheric film that focuses more on character than showy effects, making great use of two primary locations as well as the Brighton landscape. Also worth noting are Jake West’s excellent Mutoscope sequences, which add a surreal nightmare quality to the proceedings.
One for fans of the supernatural and ghost stories. Check it out.
Special Features:
“6th Sense” – the original short film by writer Ross Jameson.
FrightFest 2014 interview with John Shackleton.
Behind-the-scenes.
Visual Effects.
Gallery.
Trailer.
Region 2.
“The Sleeping Room” is now available through Second Sight.
